# Dirk (name)

Dirk is a male given name of Dutch origin. It is a traditional diminutive of the Dutch name Diederik. The meaning of the name is "the people's ruler", composed of þeud ("people") and ric ("power"). Dirk may also be a surname. It is cognate to French Thierry, German Dietrich and Gothic Theoderic.

## People with the given name

* Dirk I, Count of Holland (died 944)
* Dirk II, Count of Holland (944–988)
* Dirk III, Count of Holland (died 1039)
* Dirk IV, Count of Holland (1020–1049)
* Dirk V, Count of Holland (1052–1091)
* Dirk VI, Count of Holland (1114–1157)
* Dirk VII, Count of Holland (died 1203)
* Dirk Bach (1961–2012), German actor
* Dirk Bauermann (born 1957), German basketball coach
* Dirk Benedict (born 1945), American actor
* Dirk Bezemer (born 1971), Dutch economist
* Dirk Bikkembergs (born 1959), Belgian fashion designer
* Dirk Blocker (born 1957), American actor
* Dirk Bolt (1930–2020), Dutch-born architect
* Dirk Bootsma (1936–2020), Dutch geneticist
* Dirk Brouwer (1902–1966), American astronomer
* Dirk Brossé (born 1960), Belgian composer
* Dirk Bruinenberg (born 1968), Dutch musician
* Dirk Chivers (fl. 1694–1699), Dutch pirate
* Dirk Coster (1889–1950), Dutch physicist
* Dirk Crabeth (1501–1574), Dutch artist
* Dirk Cussler (born 1961), American writer
* Dirk Dirksen (1937–2006), American music promoter
* Dirk Elbers (born 1959), German politician
* Dirk Fock (1858–1941), Dutch politician
* Dirk Frimout (born 1941), Belgian astronaut and astrophysicist
* Dirk Gates (born 1961), American businessman
* Dirk Geukens (1963–2020), Belgian motocross racer
* Dirk Hartog (1580–1621), Dutch sailor and explorer
* Dirk Hayhurst (born 1981), American author
* Dirk Jan de Geer (1870–1960), Dutch politician and prime minister
* Dirk Jan Struik (1894–2000), Dutch mathematician and historian
* Dirk Johnson (born 1975), American football player
* Dirk Kemp (1913–1983), South African football player
* Dirk Kempthorne (born 1951), American politician
* Dirk Koetter (born 1959), American football coach
* Dirk Kuyt (born 1980), Dutch football player
* Dirk Mädrich (born 1983), German basketball player
* Dirk Mudge (1928–2020), Namibian politician
* Dirk Müller (artist) (born 1946), Dutch sculptor
* Dirk Müller (cyclist) (born 1973), German cyclist
* Dirk Müller (racing driver) (born 1975), German race car driver
* Dirk Nannes (born 1976), Australian cricket player
* Dirk Niebel (born 1963), German politician
* Dirk Nowitzki (born 1978), German basketball player
* Dirk Polder (1919–2001), Dutch physicist
* Dirk Schlächter (born 1965), German bassist
* Dirk Stikker (1897–1979), Dutch politician and diplomat
* Dirk Stoop (1615–1686), Dutch painter
* Dirk Valkenburg (1675–1721), Dutch painter
* Dirk van Erp (1860–1933), American coppersmith
* Dirk van Braeckel (born 1958), Belgian car designer
* Dirk van Raalte (1844–1910), American Union soldier and politician
* Dirk de Waard (1919–2011), Dutch-born American geologist
* Dirk Willems (died 1569), Dutch Anabaptist martyr and pacifist
* Dirk Wilutzky (born 1965), German film maker

## People with the nickname

* Dirk Bogarde (1921–1999), stage name of British actor Derek van den Bogaerde
* Stewart "Dirk" Fischer (1924–2013), American composer and musician
* Richard Dirk Gringhuis (1918–1974), American artist and illustrator
* Derrick Dirk Meyer (born 1961), American businessman
* Gerald Dirk West (1930–1996), American editorial cartoonist and journalist
* Dirk from Veristablium, nickname of Derek Muller

## People with the surname

* Robert Dirk (born 1966), Canadian ice hockey player

## Fictional characters with the name

* Dirk, a character from the horror comic series Witch Creek Road
* Dirk Anger, Marvel Comics character
* Dirk the Daring, the main character in the video game Dragon's Lair
* Dirk Dagger (also known as Dirk Spanner), the main character in the video game Dirk Dagger and the Fallen Idol
* Dirk Diggler, the main character in Boogie Nights played by Mark Wahlberg
* Dirk Dreamer, a character in the video game The Sims 2
* Dirk Gently, the main character in Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams
* Dirk McQuickly, the equivalent of Paul McCartney in The Beatles parody band The Rutles
* Dirk Pitt, the main character in novels by Clive Cussler
* Dirk Strider, a character from the webcomic Homestuck
* Dirk Struan, the main character in James Clavell's 1966 novel Tai-Pan
* Dirk (Bizaardvark character), a main character on Disney Channel's Bizaardvark
* Blackblaze Dirk, a villain in Xenoblade Chronicles 3